Evan Woolard.

Evan is a Whole Hog BBQ judge as well, he is a pretty popular guy on the Whole Hog Circuit. He is the acting President for the Carolina BBQ League that only lets cooks cook with natural source (wood,charcoal). He also host a bunch of events in and around Beaufort County, Chocowinity, Bath, Old Ford Fire departments fundraiser as well as most every holiday weekend he has an event going on somewhere. A major part of Evan desires comes from his true friend Brownie Futrell. Evan also says that all of these competitions would not be possible if it was not for the support of his family Julie, Dylan and Wyatt.

Keith Fuller.

A long timer in North Carolina BBQ, Keith Fuller has judged the North Carolina BBQ Circuit extending from the coast of Newport to the mountains of Mt Airy and various locations in between like Laurinburg, Spivey’s Corner, Lumberton, Elizabeth town, Wallace, Kinston, and even Fair Bluff.  Having judged North Carolina BBQ for decades, his love for BBQ began at a very early young age in Georgia….cooking a whole hog in a dirt pit for family reunions and numerous church homecomings.  Certified and trained by the late Jim Ferrell, Keith has had the pleasure of judging a great number of North Carolina Pork Council State Cook-offs……as Keith likes to call them …..”The Best of the Best!”  Keith is a retired Senior Plant Manager in Wood Products Manufacturing.

Chris Hight.

Chris’ love for barbecue started as a young boy traveling the state with his father in search of new barbecue restaurants.  In 2011 they made their hobby official by becoming certified barbecue judges.  Since that time Chris has judged over one hundred competitions throughout North Carolina, Virginia, and South Carolina for multiple sanctioning organizations.  He now judges almost exclusively NC Pork Council events as they best represent Chris’ passion for North Carolina whole hog traditions and include an amazing community of cooks, organizers, and judges.  During the week Chris is a Product Support Manager at Railinc, a technology company, focused on the freight-rail industry.  When not spending weekends judging, he loves attending Tar Heel football games and spending time with his wife and two-year old daughter.

Todd Combs.

Todd has competed several times at Smoke on the Water but this will be his first time judging at this event. Todd is an avid griller, following in his father’s footsteps from an early age. Originally from Greene County, Todd got involved in BBQ competitions when he moved to Beaufort County and became good friends with Evan Woolard. Todd is married, has one son and two grandchildren aged 5 and 9 months. He is very excited and honored to be judging the Smoke on the Water Gas Competition.